2013 Prize Winners Discuss Their Work

Migration Policy Institute 2013 E Pluribus Unum Prize awardees discuss their work and immigrant integration during a panel discussion also featuring representatives from the White House and state of Massachusetts..

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY IMMIGRANT INTEGRATION?

We define immigrant integration as the two-way process by which immigrants and their children come to feel and be Americans and by which American identity and culture expand to reflect each new generation of immigrants. For purposes of this awards program, we are most interested in programs that help immigrants and their children adapt, thrive, and contribute to the United States or that bring immigrants and the native born together to build stronger, more cohesive communities.

In thousands of communities across the United States creative and effective efforts to promote immigrant integration are proliferating and succeeding. Immigrant integration is being achieved, whether in adult English and job training classes at a local community college or business; in schools, health centers, or youth development programs; in neighborhood councils where immigrant- and native-born residents work together to address common problems; or in any of the many efforts that seek to promote the economic, social, and civic integration of immigrants with mainstream society.

MPI's U.S. Immigrant Integration Network is a social networking site that allows those who assist immigrants and their children in joining the mainstream of US society to share effective policies and practices. It also allows leaders and practitioners in the emerging field and sub-fields of immigrant integration to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing them in their work and share ideas and strategies for greater success.

The Network will allow you to:

learn more about immigrant integration efforts underway in different parts of the United States;

find resources on issues, policies, and practices in a wide range of integration sub-fields;

form discussion groups and share information with others on topics of common interest; and

showcase your work and share your experiences and challenges.

Periodic updates about the Prizes will be posted to the Network and members will be able to post general questions about the selection criteria and application process in the site's discussion forum. We invite all prospective applicants and those interested in immigrant integration to become members of this online community.

The E Pluribus Unum Prizes are a national awards program that beginning in 2009 has provided prizes annually to exceptional initiatives that promote immigrant integration. In December 2013, the program awarded three $50,000 prizes and one Corporate Leadership Award. Read about the 2013 winners in our press release.

The 2013 winners were honored at a ceremony in Washington, DC, on December 4. For more on the ceremony and the future of the Prizes program, read the event program.

The awards recognize outstanding immigrant integration initiatives of all types, whether led by nonprofit or community organizations, businesses, public agencies, religious groups, or individuals.

The awards program is coordinated by the Migration Policy Institute's National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy - a hub for those who seek to build their knowledge and skills in the area of immigrant integration.

The J.M. Kaplan Fund is generously providing support for these awards to focus attention on successful integration initiatives and to inspire and provide program models to others around the United States who might also undertake such efforts.